WBBSE Class 7 History Chapter 7 Lifestyle And Culture Introduction
During the Sultanate and Mughal age, most of the people lived in villages Handicrafts were developed in the villages based on agro-based products. In this period, the most significant industries were cotton, metalwork, stonework, papermaking, etc.
During the Sultanate and Mughal ages, society was based on the joint family system. The position of women in the family and society was lower than that of men. Though there was a change of rulers in different ages in Delhi and the regional states, the lifestyle of common people remained unchanged in these two ages.
- Religion was an integral part of life in medieval India. The preachers emphasized the communion between the divine and the devotees. During this age, people came to know about religious concepts like the Bhakti cult and Sufism.
- The motif of the Bhakti cult was the love or devotion of the devotees for the divine. The Alvar and Naynar priests of South India started preaching the Bhakti cult and made it popular.
- In the 13th-14th century AD, Bhakti spread from the south to northern India via western India. As a result, the influence of the Brahmins declined in social and religious life.
- From the 13th to 15th century AD, Namdev, Jnanesvar, Tukaram, Ramananda, Kabir, Nanak, Shankaradeva, Chaitanyadev, Meera Bai, and many others started their propagation of Bhakti. Their messages, writings, poems, and songs preached and expanded the Bhakti cult.
- Guru Nanak was one of the Bhakti saints of medieval India. Nanak did not introduce any religion. Later, the Sikh religion was founded on the philosophy and teachings of Nanak. Meera Bai was the one to accept the divine in her way devoid of rituals.
- Meera Bai devoted her life to Lord Krishna or Giridhari. The devotional songs created by Meera Bai are an invaluable treasure of Indian music and literature.
- There was a Bhakti saint named Kabir in the 15th-16th century AD. According to him, all religions were the same, all gods are one. In his opinion, Rama, Hari, Govinda, Allah, Sain, and Sahib are different names of the same divine being.
- Besides the Bhakti cult, Sufism had a great impact on religious life during the medieval period. The Sufi saints showed the Muslims to worship God in their own way without following the religious dogma.
- In India, two main factions of Sufis were influential, the Chistis and the Suhrawardis. Moinuddin Chisti was the founder of the Chisti community in India. The founder of the Suhrawardi community was Badruddin Zakaria.
- Nabadwip of Bengal became the center of the Bhakti movement with the leadership of Sri Chaitanya. Sri Chaitanya started preaching the Vaishnava Bhakti movement from Nabadwip.
- According to him, consciousness does not depend on the path of knowledge or birth in high caste, it can be attained only through Bhakti.
Srimanta Shankaradeva was the leader of the Bhakti movement in North-East India. A branch of the Bhakti movement had spread to Assam. The essence of his preaching was Naam Dharma (worshiping by name).
- Mughal emperor Akbar introduced a new ideology called Din-i-play. Din-i-llahi was basically an ideal spread among the nobility most loyal to Akbar. According to this ideal, the noblemen had to take a pledge of loyalty to the Emperor through an elaborate ceremony.
- The architecture of both the Sultanate and Mughal periods are the specimens of the history of Indian architecture. During the Sultanate’s rule, Indian and Islamic art merged and introduced a new school of art named the Indo-Islamic school.
- Some noteworthy architectural masterpieces of the Sultanate period are Qutb Minar and Alai Darwaza; and some of the Mughal period are Buland Darwaza, Fatehpur Sikri, Red Fort, Jama Masjid, Agra Fort and one of the seven wonders, the Taj Mahal.
- Architecture developed in different parts of India during the Sultanate and Mughal age. The architecture of Gujarat, Bengal, and South India are famous among the regional styles.
- Notable examples of regional architecture are Jami Masjid in Ahmedabad, Gol Gumbaj in Bijapur (the largest dome in India), Charminar in Hydrabad, terracotta temples at Bishnupur in Bankura, Adina Masjid at Pandua in Malda, the tomb of Sheikh Aki Siraj at Gauda, Lotan Masjid, Bada Sona Masjid, etc.
- During the Sultanate and Mughal periods, court painting was a significant form of art. The practice of illustrating books and manuscripts was common in these two ages.
Calligraphy and the use of illustration can be seen in books like Kalpasutra, Kalachakrakatha, Chourapanchashikha, Hamzanama, Razamnama, Nal-Damyanti, Zafarnama, etc. During the reign of Emperor Akbar, the art of illustration of books was improved. The books were illuminated with calligraphy and illustrations. These pictures, small in size and shape, are called ‘miniatures’.
Apart from court paintings, various styles of regional paintings flourished during the Mughal age. The theme of these paintings was Puranic scenes and subjects. Music and dance were practiced during the Sultanate and Mughal age.
- Sama songs of Sufi Pirs, Kirtans of Sri Chaitanya, and Bhajan of Meerabai enriched music. Classical music was in practice during the Sultanate age. Baiju Bawra was a famous singer of this time.
- Amir Khusrau was a famous musician and wrote many Ghazals and lyrics during the Sultanate period.
- Tansen was the most famous singer of the Mughal period.
- The Indian classical dance is basically of six types Bharatnatyam, Kathakali, Odissi, Kuchipudi, Kathak, and Manipuri.
- Persian language and literature gained greater popularity in medieval India.
- Qutbuddin Aibak, Iltutmish, and the Khilji rulers were patrons of the Persian language. Lahore was one of the main centers of Persian studies during the Sultanate age.
- Amir Khusrau was the most popular among the Persian literateurs and philosophers. Some other famous Persian writers and historians were Minhaj-i-Siraj, Isami, and Ziauddin Barani.
- Some Mughal emperors encouraged literature in Persian and Turkish languages.
Some examples of Persian and Turkish literature are the autobiography of Babur named Tuzuk-i Babari or Baburnama, Humaynnama by Gulbadan Begum, Akbarnama and Ain-i Akbari by Abul Fazl, Muntakhab-ut Tawarikh of Badauni, and Tabqat-i Akbari of Nizamuddin Ahmed.
- Bengali literature started flourishing in the Sultanate period. Some notable literary works of this period are Sree Krishna Kirtan of Badu Chandidas, a translation of the Ramayana by Krittibas Ojha, a translation of the Mahabharata by Kashiram Das, a translation of a section of the Bhagawat named Shree Krishna Vijay by Maladhar Basu, etc.
- One of the most ancient traditions of Bengali literature was Mangal Kavya. ‘Chandi Mangal’ on goddess Chandi, ‘Manasa Mangal’ on goddess Manasa, and ‘Dharma Mangal’ on Dharmathakur were most famous among the Mangal Kavyas.
- There was commendable progress in science and technology during the Sultanate and Mughal ages. In the fields of Mathematics, astronomy, botany, zoology, and medical science, there was much progress.
- Major changes took place in military technology also. Besides, the use of technology became a part of the textile industry and construction.